[Intracranial pressure - variations in brain-injured patients caused by PEEP-ventilation and lifted position of the upper part of the body (author's transl)]

Abstract

Studies about ICP-variations of brain-injured patients under artificial ventilation seem to become important, since most of those patients, especially those with various additional injuries, do not breathe spontaneously. After having ventilated 10 patients with endexpiratory pressure from 0 to 10 cm H2O, significant ICP-rises could be monitored. A significant linear ICP-decrease could be induced by lifting the upper part of the body in corresponding linear rates. If applied in clinical work, the combination of these two methods we studied, seems to mean some sort of compensation of any ICP-changes during artificial ventilation. Therefore the indication for peep ventilation of brain-injured patients can be put less limited by ventilation-caused ICP-rises.